Uncle Vanya

İtwasthisworld—arbitraryandstrange, not unjust but simplylackingjustice, without moral orspiritualtidiness, withnosimpleharmonies, no hum-alongtunes—thatwouldfinditsfull-throatedvoice in Chekhov’smostpowerfullaterworks. Thisworldwould be actualized in theplaysandstoriesthat he craftedafter 1890, whichwould define his oeuvreandestablish his reputation: “TheSeagull,” “UncleVanya,” “TheCherryOrchard,” and “Ward No. 6.” Theseworksindubitably define modern writing.
-The New Yorker